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Architects of the Monolith
Architects of the Monolith The mystical design, once recorded, will never die, but will become an immortal thing that asserts our will with ever-growing urgency. Master the monolith, the city, the undying design and master the world. Since the first temples were built, mankind has been fascinated with the meaning of buildings and the power of architecture. Standing stones erected to face the sun at the equinox, and palaces built to impress and cow the populace were combined with cosmology and sacred geometry to create complex and powerful forms and ideals for the glory of God, king and self. Nearly every culture has used these principles to one degree or another, shaping its world while shaping itself. The vampiric Architects of the Monolith emerged from this impulse as it coiled into the fevered torpor-dreams of the bloodline’s megalomaniac founder. From this brew of madness and art, the “Masons” have conjured a form of undead sorcery that gives them power over cities, inspiring them to consider themselves the ultimate masters of the gilded cage. It is such vainglory that drives the vampires of the line to form a grand conspiracy that they claim spans continents and centuries, a sweeping plot for dominion that will supposedly bring the world under their sway. The same vanity has incurred the wrath of the Lancea Sanctum and other undead to the point that the Architects have nearly been scourged from existence. Remaining Masons linger not with humility, but with an understanding that they must keep their true plans and powers concealed, lest the jealousies of “lessers” be their undoing. In the modern nights, those few Damned who know of the Architects of the Monolith think of them as an eccentric brood of Ventrue. Those who have had any direct contact may know that the line clings to antiquated notions of architecture, following Napoleonic ideals of city planning and ritual to keep the kine pacified. An even smaller number know that the brood is actually a bloodline, begun in Paris in the late 18th century, closely linked to the Ordo Dracul and known for producing brilliant Guardians and Kogaion. Those who have had direct experience with the Architects speak of darker things, of madness and destruction, and the sensation of being looked upon as a god would a flea. Although all of these rumors have an element of truth, the last are most accurate. Every member of the bloodline believes she can literally control the world by channeling mystical energy through the focus of looming architecture. The line’s founder even believes her lineage can make cities the focus of reality, turning both God and nature into mere trivialities banished to the shadow of her monolith. Bound by this mad and impossible vision, the bloodline works secretly and circumspectly. The result is a cult motivated by madness, backed by visions of conquest, and powered by esoteric sorcery. Though members’ insane visions of dominance are only so much torpor-delusion, the harm they can cause is very real. After all, individuals sacrificed for their plans aren’t any less dead, and communities wracked by their “progress” aren’t any less ruined. Parent Clan: Ventrue Nickname: Masons Covenant Most of the few extant Architects are affiliated with the Ordo Dracul. It was from the Order that they arose as a conspiracy and bloodline, and their ties with the covenant remain. It is even said that the line founder is a leading member of the Sworn of the Mysteries. While the Dracul see the Architects as too concerned with power and not attentive enough to personal transcendence, Masons still occupy a privileged position in the society. An unusually high proportion of Architects act as Kogaion. The fact that the Order expects and even encourages its members to conduct private investigations and occult experiments makes it a perfect home for the Architects. This hardly means that all Dragons are comfortable with the Architects, as the Order suspects the depths of the line’s madness, but the covenant is generally willing to give the Masons a chance to overcome their limitations — within reason. Other Architects tend to be members of the Invictus. Though they often lack the formal occult teaching of Order members, Invictus Masons are still valuable to the bloodline for the political clout and connections they wield. Since conspiracies of power are the bread and butter of the First Estate, insightful Invictus Princes enjoy having Masons under their thumb in the urban night. A smart First Estate Prince or Priscus can even ply an Architect without causing himself too much harm, so long as he’s careful to play upon the line member’s madness to keep her under control. Very few Architects become Princes themselves; it’s too public a position. They tend to do well in a Primogen capacity and often take Regencies over domains of construction, city hall or other areas that allow them to affect urban development. The rank and file of the Invictus are leery of Masons, uncertain of their occult dealings and put off by their overt madness. There are very few Architects in any of the other covenants. The Carthian mindset doesn’t sit well with the ideals of control and mystery that dominate the bloodline. The unaligned often lack the power and connections valued by the Architects. The Circle of the Crone has no Architect members, as the phallus-centric paradigm of the Masons puts them fundamentally at odds with the Crones. And yet, the Architects would very much like to seduce knowledge of Crúac away from Acolytes in order to forward their own interests. Longstanding members of the Lancea Sanctum have a special place for the Masons in their unbeating hearts. Not just because the Architects were founded by an apostate Cardinal and carry their founder’s blood-taint, but because the bloodline was once foolish enough to pit its sorcery against the Sanctified. The Masons are nearly as loving toward the Spear, as survivors remember (or have been beaten down with stories of) the nights when the Sanctified fell upon the lineage. While Masons are smart enough to avoid open hostility with the covenant, they would dearly love to strike back for their past humiliation. Of course, should the Sanctified find out that the Architects are still fully engaged in their blasphemous plans to take God’s power as their own, history could repeat itself. Appearance Members of the bloodline are every inch Ventrue, though they tend to be modern rather than conservative in their personage and apparel. Most old members are of European derivation, with a preponderance of French members with that famous Gaelic nose. In the modern nights, there are increasing numbers of Hispanic and Japanese members, as well as Americans of mixed background. All Masons dress well, generally in business attire, sometimes with a French flair designed to remind them of their glory days in Paris. A very few elders yearn for the days of Worth gowns, swashbuckling cuffs and hussar boots, and take formal parties as an opportunity to revel in their golden age, but few are so out of touch to think such apparel suited for nightly wear. Haven As the would-be masters of urban civilization, nothing but the best can serve as a haven for one of the Masons. Sixtieth-story penthouse condos with secret rooms, safety vaults and full security are possible, designed to be impregnable while maintaining the image of powerful nonchalance. Sprawling villas or small mansions with perfect French gardens in the high style of Le Notre are popular, though Masons in young and populous cities have had to give Background Being Ventrue, the Architects take only childer who seem the best to their skewed perceptions. The main traits considered desirable are a craving for personal power and control; extensive knowledge of architecture, urban studies, city planning or the occult; and the ability to exist independently and quietly. This combination of requirements leads to many members being from mixed corporate and academic backgrounds, with a preference for those who are both well-educated and successful in businesses, such as in real estate and urban development. Above and beyond all else, each prospective Architect must prove her ability to keep a secret. The Masons have a natural flair for secrecy and dissembling to rival that of the Mekhet. Other Ventrue who meet Architect standards can be adopted into the line. An Architect most likely approaches a prospective member, and then only after the candidate has been circumspectly but thoroughly tested on his initial sanity, ability to keep secrets and compatibility with the bloodline’s goals. These tests are generally hidden in the nightly politics of the Requiem, with false alliances and information being given and fake agents sent to trick, bribe or coerce information from the potential recruit. He is deemed of merit only if he can impress his assailant-adopters. Once a subject has been found worthy, the Architects approach obliquely, carefully sounding him out and making him take fearsome oaths before bringing him into their august ranks. Character Creation Chosen and groomed for mental acumen backed by social strength and secrecy, Architects tend toward high Mental and Social traits. Members have above average Resolve, Intelligence and Composure. It’s a rare Mason who doesn’t have a deep interest in and knowledge of the mysteries of sacred and mystical architecture, leading to a high level in Occult. Just after the mystical comes immersion in the theory of Academics, the practice of Crafts and the knowledge of Science as each relates to architecture, construction, gardening, demolitions and urban planning. Politics and Socialize are considered practical tools needed to impose one’s vision on the world, without being a primary focus. The splendid mansions, penthouses and castles of the Architects require a high level of Haven. Connections with urban-development offices, city government, architectural firms and construction companies require dots in Allies, Contacts, Resources and Status (among mortal instiutions). Despite social connections and Ventrue blood, few line members have Status in vampiric circles, due to their low profile and the madness that makes others shun them. Any character who immediately starts down the path of an Architect rather than as a mere land-speculating Ventrue needs a second dot of Blood Potency. Bloodline Disciplines Auspex , Dominate , Gilded Cage , Resilience Weakness The Architects’ specific weakness is deeper seated, though no one is sure if it’s a flaw in their nature or a curse passed down from their founder. All Masons are afflicted with the Narcissism derangement upon the Embrace, and gain Megalomania as their first severe derangement. (How the latter is acquired doesn’t matter. It could be the result of a failed Humanity roll or the result of a traumatizing experience in the Danse Macabre.) The twist to line members’ Narcissism and Megalomania is that neither focuses on the bearer alone, but extends to the line founder Ermenjart and her vision (see below) as well. That is, Architects do not just believe they are unquestionably superior, they believe their founder is as well, and that her plans for world dominion will come true. Unlike many megalomaniacs, Masons have learned to keep quiet about their certainty. The madness drives them, it just does so silently and subtly. Organization The Architects of the Monolith is a group of madmen and women overseen by a demoniac. From her palatial Parisian haven, Ermenjart la Charpentière rules her childer with power, fear, oaths and blood bonds. The elder has been active and alert, avoiding torpor for the existence of the bloodline, and her grasp on it is sure. In order to maintain control of her brood and to allow her to pursue her insane goals, she has turned the bloodline into something between a cult and a corporation, parsing out control and authority through a series of grandiosely titled subalterns. Ermenjart herself is recognized as “The Carpenter” (“la Charpentière”) and does everything in her power to turn herself into a messianic figure for her childer. She promises them a new world based on their creations, a vampiric Zion in which all power will flow through urban channels to feed the Architects. Due to the weakness of the bloodline, almost every member accepts this goal wholeheartedly. Under the Carpenter is the Main de Gloire, the trio of her eldest childer who govern the line when Ermenjart is too busy “bringing about the new salvation of steel, concrete and blood.” Decorated with titles and ranks, this triumvirate should have great authority, but the truth is the Main de Gloire is too divided by its own vision and them up to maintain the Masquerade. Other than quality and elegance, the common feature of all Architect havens is that they are in someway imposing, impressive or mystically significant. Be this a fine historical pedigree or an avant-garde sense of space, something about a haven makes it “mystically powerful” in a twisted interpretation of sacred construction. Many Architects keep truly eye-catching elements confined to the interior of a haven, so as to avoid notice, while others ensure their havens disappear into the cityscape, despite their haute couture. with André Le Norte, architect and gardener for Louis XIV, and from that meeting Ermenjart gained vision. Her newly inspired dream was of necropoli that would channel and control energy, using it to provide sustenance for the vampiric condition. For nearly a century she influenced and was influenced by mortal necrographers, resulting in mystical influence over the Pêre Lachaise cemetery in Paris. Upon the opening of the cemetery in 1804, Ermenjart realized that not only did construction of the place affect interior ley lines, it warped the flow in the surrounding city, changing the behavior of kine in surrounding neighborhoods. This realization brought Ermenjart to her full vision: the manipulation of ley lines through sacred architecture to control cities, turning them into the center of reality. It was a megalomaniacal dream of nightmarish proportions, and Ermenjart knew she could neither accomplish it alone nor trust outsiders with the plan. (It’s also possible that some deep-seated part of her knew her vision was impossible, and she would not share it for fear of being confronted with the truth.) So it was that a bloodline emerged from la Charpentière’s efforts to see her plan to fruition, yet to keep it secret among trusted childer. The early Architects used their Ventrue ties to gain influence and standing with the builders, planners, contractors and mystics of Paris. When Georges Haussmann began his renovation of Paris under Napoleon III, the bloodline was behind the scenes, learning and manipulating. Members were convinced that they had mastered the ley lines of Paris when they unlocked the secret sorcery of the Gilded Cage. That marked the golden age of the line, when the most members were Embraced and inducted, a time that elders now remember with nostalgia bordering on idolatry. To this day, the Paris of the Napoleons is upheld as an example of what the Architects can do, and of the world the Carpenter would create. Glittering, decadent, beautiful and utterly corrupt. The golden age came to a crashing end when Ermenjart and the Main de Gloire overreached themselves and used sorcery to destroy a handful of Lancea Sanctum Bishops whom they felt opposed their plans. This outrage led to a backlash that shattered the Architects in London and Vienna, and left even the Paris faction decimated. The Carpenter learned her lesson and slunk into the shadows, letting the Sanctified think they had put an end to her machinations. After years in hiding, the Masons spread slowly and quietly through many of Europe and America’s greatest cities. The dangers of travel and the still-angry Sanctified claimed several of the less cautious, but Section d’Or were soon established once more in London, New York, Chicago and Vienna. Meanwhile, young Masons established themselves in any city where they felt they could make a mark. With every new Gilded Cage ritual discovered, the bloodline was convinced it moved that madness to be effective in coordinating any united action of the line. The three are, however, extremely effective at punishing any Mason who betrays them or Ermenjart. Beneath the Main de Gloire, the organization breaks down by location. Most cities are still beyond the reach of the bloodline’s limited numbers; many major cities are home to only a single Architect. Such a solo operative is known as a Lion de Zion. Lions work directly for the Main de Gloire, receiving bizarre and often contradictory orders that are supposed to further the great work. These representative tend to get very good at interpreting the Main de Gloire’s orders to fit their own particular madness, and spend much of their time furthering personal goals. About a dozen of the most important cities in the world — New York, London and Moscow among them — have a cabal of Architects known as a Section d’Or. Each group is lead by a Clef de Voûte, who answers to the Main de Gloire and who ostensibly works with other cities’ Clefs de Voûte. A Clef de Voûte leads other Architects in a city, coordinating their individual projects toward the greater plan. Each member of the Section d’Or is theoretically responsible for her own domain, but in some cities the Clef de Voûte micromanages every aspect of Architects’ operations. Of course, groups and individuals have also become very good at interpreting mad orders from above to fit their individual delusions. The Architects are most powerful in Europe and on the American East Coast. European Masons still rebuild from the carnage that the world wars inflicted, which has allowed American members in Chicago and New York to catch up. In the last 30 years, a few radical Lions have managed to gain the approval of the Main de Gloire with daring work in developing nations in South American and southeast Asia, taking credit for achievements such as the Petronas Towers in Kuala Lumpur (which they in fact had very little to do with). The bloodline also has aspirations of expanding into Japan, where megacity and neocity research and development promises massive rewards. Concepts Ruthless real-estate mogul, urban studies or geology professor, demolition expert, creepy architect, necropolis designer, urban-renewal politician, science-fiction writer/futurist (specializing in super-cities and arcologies), public-works engineer, master of traffic and transit, feng-shui mystic, ley-line tracker, urban spiritualist, landscaper/gardener, Napoleonic throwback. History In the late 17th century, Ermenjart la Charpentière was a heretic against the Lancea Sanctum. She was newly risen from torpor and tormented with half-understood memories of building Louis IX’s Parisian Sainte-Chapelle, and working with great mystics in Prague. Her quest for comprehension brought her to the Ordo Dracul and they taught her about ley lines and mystical correspondence. Synchronicity brought her in contact, however briefly, much closer to world domination, and so continued plotting. The brood weathered the world wars and “great enemies” such as Daniel Burnham (who probably never knew the Architects existed), and moved into the age of skyscrapers and urban development with a grace that few other Ventrue could match. As of the 21st century, the Main de Gloire estimates that the “great work” still has 450 years left until its completion, putting it slightly ahead of its original A.D. 2600 projection. Ermenjart herself wonders if she may have been overly conservative, however. With “triumphs” such as the Petronas Towers in Kuala Lumpur and the possibilities they open in developing Third World nations, perhaps the plan can be accomplished sooner. In these nights, the founder dreams of a world with cities as reality itself, wilderness reduced to mist and ash, and all the power of ley lines flowing into her hands. Perhaps it can all be accomplished before the turn of the next century! From her, the force of these dreams spreads through the bloodline, urging members to further madness and power, demanding that they become masters of their cities, no matter how much blood must be used as mortar for the bricks. Society and Culture Ermenjart is the undisputed master of the Architects. Elders are blood bound to her, giving her a tight grip on the most powerful Clefs de Voûte. They, in turn, often blood bond their childer to make sure that the line’s mission proceeds without dissension in the ranks. A few young members see no need for such draconian measures, as they find the carrot of power, coupled with their own inherent madness, more than sufficient to keep their ambition in order. The selectivity with which new members are initiated also contributes to making the Architects a tight lineage. While it bears all of the usual rivalries of undead existence, each member knows where he stands. No matter how intense hatred from within becomes, anyone on the outside is automatically an enemy and potential inquisitor. Nightly activity is mostly occupied with the politicking and hunting that dominates vampiric existence. Members also work toward the fulfillment of their great, deluded dream, building their imagined monolith brick by brick. How exactly an individual answers this call depends on her place and roll in the line. A Clef de Voûte’s time is occupied with keeping her Section d’Or coordinated. Members of a Section d’Or focus on their individual areas of talent, attempting to interweave the mortal, mystical and vampiric through all levels of their portfolio. They also spend a great deal of their time politicking, as they are the Architects most likely to battle over esteem and territorial disputes with other vampires. Not to mention that they often have their eyes on the Clef de Voûte’s position, either in their own city or in another. Lions de Zion have to do all of the above, acting as both Clef and Section for a city, without the direct backing of others. It’s a rare Lion who can actually advance his plans, as it takes both great subtlety and vast aggression. They types of projects that receive the nightly attention of Lions and members of the Section are wide and variable. Members of the Ordo Dracul focus on causing, dealing with and tracking ley-line shifts. That can include anything from studying the effects of wind dispersion from a new skyscraper to the energy created by a sewer or subway line. It also means playing shadow games with mortal mystics or Crone witches, and devising new, more complex and bloodier rituals. Members of the Invictus focus on playing power politics with other vampires, manipulating city resources and fiefs to manage both vampiric and mortal zones of influence, and keeping Mason activities beneath the notice of Prince and Primogen. In addition, there is any number of seeming illogical and random demands thrown into the mix, driven by the particular focus of any Mason’s madness. Every bloodline member is involved in architecture and city planning in some way, though it need not be a directly obvious connection. Some specialize in coercing and bribing city planners into rezoning areas for development, or to allow construction of buildings that violate zoning laws. Others focus on gaining resources and funding for such construction, or stirring up fear and paranoia in neighborhoods so as to make them easier to rezone and keep the herd’s focus off encroaching expansion. Others put on architectural fares and exhibitions, trying to pick mortal minds for new ideas, or they infiltrate college faculties to gain access to the newest and brightest as potential blood members. Others focus on less obvious endeavors, such as using origami to find more efficient building models, doing studies on how various materials channel mystical energy, or inquiring into how television shows influence the mental terrain of a city. How much respect Architects are given for such enigmatic pursuits depends on their ability to convince others of their utility. If a member can convince peers that her study of eggshells will yield great results 200 years down the line, she garners almost as much respect as the Mason who influences the construction of a 110-story skyscraper. If she can’t convince anyone of her purpose, she may quickly be reduced to obsolescence. Gilded Cage The grandly titled Gilded Cage is a form of ritual magic known only to the Architects of the Monolith. Born of a combination of Theban Sorcery, Ordo Dracul rituals and sacred geometry, the art form focuses on controlling aspects of architecture and urban development to gain mystical power over a city. Most of the rituals have a Victorian Masonic aspect, with implements and precise performance required for their use. To date, no non-Architect has ever learned the Gilded Cage, as it is one of the bloodline’s most closely guarded secrets. Very few vampires know of its existence as anything other than an odd power, often assuming it a path of the Coils of the Dragon. Teaching an outsider not only gives away power, it gives away secrets that could lead to the bloodline’s undoing. Nearly as importantly, elders use their knowledge of line rituals to keep younger members under their thumb. The only way to learn a new ritual is to be taught it by an elder who has mastered it, so progenitors use the careful doling out of power as a potent method of control. Cost: Using Gilded Cage always costs one Willpower point. The whole Discipline is based on the idea of imposing one’s will on the world through mystical-scientific research. Willpower spent in this manner does not add three dice to activation rolls. Also, because only one Willpower point may ever be spent in a turn, another cannot be spent to augment a Gilded Cage roll unless specified otherwise. Furthermore, Gilded Cage rituals require that specific items be used or that a caster be in a certain place in order to activate a power. Items, known as Means, are foci that align the will with the forces channeled. Places, known as Ways, are sites where a pre-existing tendency toward certain phenomena already exists. Any attempt to invoke a Gilded Cage ritual without proper Ways and Means fails automatically. Unlike other forms of vampiric sorcery, however, the Ways and Means used to activate Gilded Cage rituals are not consumed. They can be reused unless specifically noted otherwise. This fact has led some to suggest that Ways and Means are simply props to undead will and not actually mystical tools, but such conjecture defies the Carpenter’s teachings…. Like Crúac and Theban Sorcery, Gilded Cage does not have a linear progression as other Disciplines do. A character’s mastery (dots) dictates the highest level of rituals that he may learn. Rituals are bought with experience points. For example, a character with Gilded Cage 2 can know an unlimited number of one-dot and two-dot rituals (provided the experience points are paid to learn each), but he may not learn any three-dot rituals until his Gilded Cage trait increases to 3. Each time a character acquires a dot in Gilded Cage (including at character creation), he gains a ritual of that level at no additional cost. Dice Pool: Intelligence + Occult + Gilded Cage Action: Extended. The number of successes required to activate a ritual is equal to the level of the ritual (so a three-dot rite requires three successes to enact). Each roll represents one turn of casting. Note that each point of damage suffered in a turn is a penalty to the next casting roll made for the character. If a character fails to complete a ritual in time (such as by being sent into torpor before accumulating enough successes) or he decides to cancel the performance before garnering enough successes, the effect simply fails. Spent Willpower is not recovered. Roll Results Dramatic Failure: The ritual fails spectacularly, either inflicting some aspect of itself as a detrimental effect upon the caster or causing a reversed effect. Failure: No successes are accumulated toward the required total. Success: The number of successes rolled is accumulated toward the total required. Once that total is met, the ritual takes place as described. Exceptional Success: Five or more successes are gathered than needed to perform the ritual. The effect takes place as described. In many cases extra successes are their own reward, conferring additional duration or capacity. Suggested Modifiers Modifier Situation +2 Power is used in the downtown/center of a major city +2 Power applies to a vampire with whom the user has a blood tie +1 Power is used in the downtown/center of a minor city — The character is unaffected by threats or distractions — Power is used in a moderately sized urban environment –1 Power is used in the downtown/center of a town –1 Per Health point lost to an attack –1 to –3 The character is rushed or distracted, such as by invoking a ritual in combat or while trapped in a burning building. This penalty is cumulative with multiple distractions (such as by casting a ritual in combat during a hurricane). Successes gained on a meditation roll for the night (see p. 51 of the) offset interruption penalties on a one-for-one basis. –2 Power is used in a small urban area –3 Power is used on the outskirts of civilization Paths of the Prey (Level-One Gilded Cage Ritual) This ritual combines an ability to read ley lines with intimate knowledge of the traffic flow of a city to make it much easier for a vampire to find mortals suitable for feeding. While any Damned knows she can find someone drunk in the Rack, someone using this ritual can find a ready, willing vessel in the downtown business core on a Monday night by following the flows of energy and probability, and by knowing of places where the city’s layout clouds mortal minds. Successes achieved on this ritual are added as bonus dice to the hunting roll made for the vampire that night (and for that night only). Only one casting of this rite can affect a user at a time. The rite can be performed on another vampire after a “consultation” with the caster in person. Ways and Means: A detailed city-planning map of the area to be hunted Red Light (Level-One Gilded Cage Ritual) Traversing a well-planned city should be effortless, while crossing a poorly planned city is a daunting task. Using this ritual, an Architect is able to increase the amount of time it takes a subject to get from one point to another by invoking the random functions of the city to plague him. Victims of this ritual hit every light red, are caught behind trucks that break down in the middle of the street, are detoured by construction and are unable to find parking. A victim must be in the same city as the caster, and the caster must specify what location (typically about a five-block area) is made difficult to access. Each success on the ritual increases the base time required to get to that location by 25%. Exceptional success simply triples the travel time required. So, if normal transit requires 30 minutes, two successes increase that by 50%, for a total travel time of 45 minutes. Five or more successes make it a 90-minute trip. No more than one casting of Red Light can apply to a single subject at a time. If the subject gives up trying to reach one destination and heads to another in a different part of town, a new casting must be performed to befuddle him again. The Direction Sense Merit has no benefit for the subject. He knows where he needs to go, he just can’t get there. Ways and Means: Specification of the inaccessible locale Green Light (Level-Two Gilded Cage Ritual) The opposite of Red Light, this ritual enables an Architect to use secret detours, lucky coincidences, clear roads and traffic lights to help hurry someone from one point to another. Each success (getting only one doesn’t count) cuts travel time by 10%, down to a minimum of 50% of the basetime. So, if a trip normally takes an hour and three successes are achieved, 18 minutes are shaved off the trip. (Accumulating only one success before the rite has to be terminated nets no results.) If the ritual is cast on someone else, the Architect must be in the same city as the subject, and must specify to what destination the rite applies. If the subject changes destinations for any reason, the ritual no longer applies and travel time returns to normal. Another casting is required for the subject’s new destination. If the ritual is performed on the Mason himself, the effects last for an entire night, making all travel for the evening faster. Note that a subject’s actual Speed does not increase. No more than one casting of Green Light can apply to a subject at a time. Ways and Means: A planner’s triangle, a map of the city and a current schedule of the city’s public transportation Aura of the Monolith (Level-Two Gilded Cage Ritual) Great architecture inspires compelling emotions, be they of awe, reverence or fear. This ritual allows the caster to link herself symbolically to a great structure in order to enhance her personal aura, giving her something of the authority and radiance of the structure itself. For each success achieved on the activation roll (accumulating only one nets no result), one bonus die is gained on Social rolls that involve the same emotion or premise that the building invokes. Intimidation and Persuasion rolls are most likely to be affected, but Expression rolls could be affected if a building is an arts hall, for example. The effect works only as long as the caster has direct line of sight to the structure in question, and the rite can be called upon throughout the night in which it is cast, as long as the same building comes into view again. Changing buildings requires a new incantation. No more than one ritual can be active at the same time. The inspirational structure must be directly visible to the naked eye, not through binoculars or on television. Example: Marie wants to enhance her personal aura of rightful authority, so casts Aura of the Monolith with a link to City Hall. Her player gets three successes. So long as she is in line of sight to City Hall, her player gains three extra dice to likely Social rolls, such as influencing others with Intimidation or Persuasion. If the Storyteller agrees, even Subterfuge rolls could be affected. Ways and Means: Line of sight to the structure in mind Gather the Herd (Level-Three Gilded Cage Ritual) A well-planned city not only makes it easy for citizens to move through its streets, it actually guides and influences that movement. This ritual allows the caster to usher a group of people to a certain location at a certain time, using the complexities of transportation, mapping and herd mentality. Each success allows the caster to gather 100 people in an area the size of a parking lot or small park over the course of an hour. (Accumulating only one or two successes before the ritual is terminated nets no results.) The ritual does not allow for control of specific individuals, nor does it compel subjects to travel to the site against their will. A multitude of people who were already in transit simply end up there despite their intentions to get elsewhere. On an exceptional success, the ritualist can specify a specific group of people, such as ravers, senior citizens or gang members. A caster can have only one application of this ritual in effect at a time. The user must be within the city and need not be at the designated location for people to arrive there. Only mortals are influenced by this power; ghouls, vampires and other supernatural beings are not. Once the ritual has been performed, the caster cannot dispel it; people continue to gather within an hour and may then disperse under their own power. Ways and Means: A park, parking lot, stadium or other structure/area where people might normally gather. A formal invitation to the “event” written in the caster’s blood (invokes no Vitae cost). Eye of the Pyramid (Level-Three Gilded Cage Ritual) One of the reasons monumental architecture is so powerful is that it can be seen from almost anywhere, and thus has a mystical correspondence to perception. A Mason using this ritual gains sensory powers over the building on which it is cast. Each success rolled allows the character to see or hear anything that occurs within the building for one hour. (Accumulating only one or two successes before the rite has to be terminated nets no results.) The Architect sees all and hears all, from a whisper in the basement to the numbers turned on a penthouse safe. Auspex abilities may be targeted at the building through this mystical connection and gain a +2 bonus, possibly allowing the viewer to penetrate Obfuscate powers (Vampire, p. 119). The user must be within the same city as the building. A ritualist may cast Eye of the Pyramid on a number of buildings at the same time equal to her Gilded Cage dots, but cannot focus on more than one building at a time. While the ritualist focuses, she is deaf and blind to events in her physical presence. Physical contact of any kind with a projecting vampire brings her senses back to her body immediately. A caster need not specify where her broadcast senses actually lie in a building. She’s aware of everything that goes on inside and can filter it all down to one spectacle and one word spoken. Events outside the building cannot be perceived through a window. Ways and Means: A whole brick from the building Lock the Gilded Cage (Level-Four Gilded Cage Ritual) The poetic term that Kindred use to describe their reliance on the city has been one of Masons’ fascinations since the bloodline’s inception. This ritual allows the caster to make a city into a literal cage for a subject. Every way out of the city is blocked. Cars break down, trains derail and roads are cut off by construction. With exceptional success, police barricades, sinkholes and floods may block a subject from leaving. The action to activate this power is extended and contested, pitting the caster’s Intelligence + Occult + Gilded Cage against the subject’s Resolve + Blood Potency (resistance is reflexive). If the victim acquires four net successes before the caster, the ritual fails. Another attempt cannot be made against the same subject for four nights. If the caster gains those (or more) successes first, each success blocks the victim from leaving the city by mundane means for one day and night. The subject is unaware of the power applied to him, and does not know why her existence has suddenly become so difficult. Superstitious victims may suspect sorcery, of course, but have no proof of it. The power applies to even a vampire whose ghouls seek to escort (or carry) her from town. If a subject has extraordinary or supernatural means of travel or escape (such as magic), the ritual blocks one use of that power per success accumulated in the activation roll. So, if a subject has the capacity to will herself from a spot in one city to a spot in another city, and four successes are gathered for the vampire in keeping the victim rooted, four attempts at the escape power fail. The fifth allows the subject to leave normally. Use of Celerity to move quickly to escape a city does not apply as “extraordinary.” Ways and Means: Access to a legal building such as a courthouse or police station, and a picture or belonging of the victim Metropolis of the United Diagram (Level-Five Gilded Cage Ritual) This ritual is the newest creation of the Main de Gloire, having come about in Chicago in the 1930s. Its utility has put it in high demand ever since, and it has spread rapidly throughout the ranks of Architects capable of performing it. The ritual requires a longer than normal activation: one minute per roll rather than one turn. The ritualist opens himself to the connections among the powerful monuments of his city. The vampire then vanishes from his current location and appears at another. When the required successes are accumulated, the performer travels instantaneously from one spot to another within the same city. The caster must have visited the new site previously. Only items worn and that can be held in hand go with the ritualist. No one can be brought along. Nor can items that cannot be held or lifted. Ways and Means: A map of the city and a diamond of at least two carats.